KUALA LUMPUR: The move to provide working mothers with financial assistance for up to 30 davs after their 98-day maternity leave has received the thumbs-up from a think tank, but it says more workplace reforms are needed.
The Social and Economic Research Initiative (Seri) praised the government's post-maternity allowance initiative, describing it as a positive step towards increasing Malaysia's female labour force participation rate to 63% by 2030.
"This financial aid recognises the challenges women face when transitioning back to work after childbirth, which can help ease pressure and offer stability for new mothers," it said in a statement on Tuesday (May 5).
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It cautioned, however, that broader structural workplace reforms are needed to ease the challenges women continue to face when returning to work or advancing their careers.
It cited its recent studies – "Workplace Realities: Investigating Gender Discrimination Across Different Industries and Work Settings" and "Toward a Mandate for Workplace Childcare in The Private Sector: Exploring Supply and Demand Barriers" conducted in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Malaysia – highlighted ongoing structural issues that continue to affect women, especially mothers.
The studies found that many women still face discrimination linked to pregnancy and caregiving responsibilities, and some are pushed out of the workforce because of a lack of adequate support after childbirth.
This is reinforced by structural gaps in childcare and workplace policies, the findings showed.
"For instance, over 70% of working mothers surveyed consider workplace childcare important, yet only 4.4% currently have access to such facilities, reflecting a significant gap between demand and provision.
"In the absence of formal support, many women rely on informal care arrangements, with 36.8% depending on family members.
"At the same time, 41.7% of respondents cited the lack of available workplace childcare as the main barrier, underscoring persistent accessibility challenges," the statement read.
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The findings highlight that workplace flexibility is critical for women's continued participation in the workforce, it added.
It said about 74.5% of women indicated a need for flexible working hours, while 70.1% prefer work-from-home options, suggesting that financial support alone is insufficient without supportive work arrangements.
Seri managing director Rashaad Ali said these findings show that while financial support after maternity leave is important, "It must be complemented by workplace structures that enable mothers to return, remain, and progress in their careers.
"In light of the current global energy crisis and rising cost of living, this becomes all the more important."
He added that to build on the government's commitment, Seri believes support for mothers must go beyond short-term financial assistance.
He said flexible work arrangements such as hybrid work and flexible hours remain one of the most practical ways to help women stay in the workforce.
He said childcare support needs to be more realistic and varied, combining workplace options withsubsidies, partnerships and community based solutions to better reflect how families actually manage care today.
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"There is also a need to strengthen shared parental leave so that caregiving responsibilities are more evenly distributed, rather than falling primarily on mothers," added Alicia Lee, a senior researcher at Seri.
She noted that as of April, countries like Singapore have taken steps in this direction by introducing a 10-week shared parental leave scheme, signalling a shift towards more balanced caregiving support.
Policies should also recognise that not all companies operate the same way as larger firms may be better placed to provide workplace childcare, while SMEs will need more targeted support and incentives to do so, she added.
Simplifying regulatory processes and improving awareness of existing initiatives will also be important to ensure that both employers and workers are able to access and benefit from these supports, Lee said.
"The post-maternity allowance is an important bridge," added Seri programme manager Sara Rizal.
"But to truly retain women in the workforce, we must address the full ecosystem of support from childcare access to workplace flexibility and employer accountability."
On Friday (May 1), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced the post-maternity leave allowance under the Employment Insurance System Act 2017, to empower women employees after childbirth.
